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15 great fantasy and science fiction books from 2020 you may have missed

By Daniel Roman

LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 20: Joe Abercrombie attends the 2012 Orion Authors' Party at the Natural History Museum at the Natural History Museum on February 20, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Orion Books)
LONDON, ENGLAND - FEBRUARY 20: Joe Abercrombie attends the 2012 Orion Authors' Party at the Natural History Museum at the Natural History Museum on February 20, 2012 in London, England. (Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images for Orion Books) /
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14. The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin

For the final two books on this list, we’re going to move away from debut or newer authors and onto some really well-established writers who released new books or started new series in 2020. When it comes to the bad timing of releasing books during the year of COVID, The City We Became by N.K. Jemisin is a novel that comes straight to mind — it hit shelves right in the middle of March, when the first stage of the worldwide lockdown was kicking into high gear.

Granted, Jemisin is a well-established enough author that the start of her new The Great Cities trilogy still held its own, and has received award nominations and accolades aplenty. But in case you missed out on it what with all the mayhem, let’s give this one a look:

"In Manhattan, a young grad student gets off the train and realizes he doesn’t remember who he is, where he’s from, or even his own name. But he can sense the beating heart of the city, see its history, and feel its power. In the Bronx, a Lenape gallery director discovers strange graffiti scattered throughout the city, so beautiful and powerful it’s as if the paint is literally calling to her. In Brooklyn, a politician and mother finds she can hear the songs of her city, pulsing to the beat of her Louboutin heels. And they’re not the only ones. Every great city has a soul. Some are ancient as myths, and others are as new and destructive as children. New York? She’s got six."

The City We Became follows a group of people who unknowingly become avatars of New York City, which is being attacked by a sort of Eldritch horror that only they can see. When the city needs to be defended, it reaches out and empowers these avatars to do the job.

The idea of bringing NYC to life, portraying its vastness and diversity through its avatars and their differing backgrounds, has got to be one of the most unique story ideas in recent years.

It also makes me really curious about where the series is going to go from here. It sounds like we’ll be seeing more of New York City in the sequel, but so far news has been sparse.

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